My heart has been so warmed lately by the good word of mouth for my book You Make it Better that I wrote for kids who have a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer's disease. Some generous friends have bought copies to donate to their local chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. I've also formed a couple alliances for spreading the word and helping the cause, which I'm happy to share here.
Our local library has been doing a virtual storytime hour via Facebook live. It's so sweet and fun, and my kiddo has loved taking part twice a week since the pandemic hit. We miss going to our beautiful, new local library and playing. But the storytime in our own living room where we can sing and dance and learn is a great substitute!
A couple weeks ago, Brittany, our vibrant kid's librarian included You Make It Better in her storytime to help kids read books on a theme about loving and offering kindness to those who are different from you. It was so exciting for me and Harvey, who immediately exclaimed "Mom, that's your book! You wrote that book, mom!"
He also pointed to himself when it got to the pages with the cartoons that match him and his "Gigi". Here he is pointing, and saying "It's me!"
Someone else recently wrote to me and thanked me for the diversity in the book. My hope is that every kid will get to a page in this book and say "It's me!" I wanted every kid to be able to recognize themselves in at least one of the characters. Children of all shapes, sizes, colors, styles, ethnicities, and walks of life should be represented in literature. Kids need stories that reflect them!
Speaking of great storytelling. I have a dear friend who is a talented actor, director and filmmaker. He also reached out recently about cross-promoting my book with Frozen Stage Films production "Of Children and Wine". Frozen Stage Films brings professionals together with new filmmakers. They are helping to mentor in a professional, fun film setting while creating quality shows and films. Frozen Stage Films recently shared about my book, and I want to also share info about this moving film.
About “Of Children and Wine” :
Archie has known the secret to grapes and children all his life. But Dementia has slowly been taking Archie’s thoughts. Drawn to the unseen children, Archie excuses himself from dinner to search for the kids. Ultimately, he finds them.
The woman who wrote this film based it on her own life situation because her father had Alzheimer's disease, and the two main memories that remained for him were always his love of wine and his love for children. Like my mom, the character in this film suffers from hallucinations as part of how his disease manifests. Many of the people who worked on the film have personal connections to dementia and Alzheimer's disease, and the film stars Richard Riehle, who you'll definitely recognize from a large body of film work.
Follow Frozen Stage Films on Facebook to find more about when "Of Children and Wine" is coming to a theatre near you, and learn about the other quality work of this independent film company.
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